At The Photography Show, 2019: The PhotoBook Publishers

Written & Photographed by Kenn Sava

PhotoBooks are a phenomenom.

The twin “holy grails” of American PhotoBooks. Signed first edition copies of Walker Evans’s American Photographs and Robert Frank’s The Americans. I knelt in silent homage for a few moments to center myself before venturing into the rest of the PhotoBook area. Seen at Harper’s Books. Many editions later? Both books are still in print.

As documented by Gerry Badger’s and Martin Parr in their The PhotoBook: A History (three volumes), or Andrew Roth in his The Book of 101 Books, a truly great PhotoBook is akin to a great album (Lp or CD), a great Film, even a great Novel. It took Walker Evans’ American Photographs, 1938, and then Robert Frank’s The Americans (published in France in 1958, the USA in 1959) to realize and reveal to many, particularly to other Photographers,  the infinite possibilities of the PhotoBook at its finest1, to turn it into a medium of expression, an Artform in itself. Echoes of their work reverberated throughout the Publishers and Organizations area of AIPAD.

Since Mr. Frank’s The Americans,  the PhotoBook has seemed to increasingly strike a chord in Photographers, book buyers, lovers of Photography and even the general public, to the point that most big bookstores now have a Photography/PhotoBook section that may even rival their Art section. There are stores that carry nothing but PhotoBooks here and dotted all over the world (I have bought from many of them). In an age when digital media seems to be usurping and replacing everything that’s come before, not one major PhotoBook publisher has abandoned physical books (and only a few also release eBooks)!

I love the smell of freshly printed PhotoBooks in the late afternoon. A view of the popular Publishers and Photo Organizations section of AIPAD, in its new location. Renowned indie TBW Books’ table is closest to my camera.

There’s some debate about whether Photographs are seen better on the walls of galleries and museums or in a PhotoBook. Interestingly, during his conversation at Sean Kelly on April 4th (while AIPAD was going on), Alec Soth referred to there being “book Photographers and wall Photographers.” He then said that he sees himself as a “book Photographer.”

“Book Photographer” Alec Soth’s show I know How Furiously Your Heart Is Beating of work from his new book of the same name seen up on the walls of Sean Kelly Galley. simultaneously with AIPAD, about 20 blocks south.

At AIPAD, you could walk through the galleries and then look through some PhotoBooks by many of the same Photographers to decide which you prefer for yourself. (By the way, Part 1 of my AIPAD coverage, focusing on the galleries, may be seen following this part, or here.) I see points on both sides and so I haven’t made up my mind. (Do I have to?) However, I will point out one thing that doesn’t help- as you can see in virtually every piece I’ve done on a Photography show, glare is a continual problem in both museums and galleries. What’s not debatable is that PhotoBooks provide countless Photographers a way to have their work seen- and for most of them, it’s the ONLY way their work will be seen. Getting gallery representation is a dream for many Photographers I’ve spoken to the past 2 years. It reminds me of my days in Music, when most Musicians I knew dreamt of getting a record deal. The few who did wound up in debt from having to pay back all monies spent on their behalf by the record company when their records failed to sell as many copies as they’d also dreamed. Be careful what you wish for might have been the takeaway from that experience. Later, as an independent record producer, I found myself in a position not unlike that of many of the PhotoBook publishers I meet and saw at AIPAD- independents who own and run businesses which require the laying out of sizable sums of money on their part to produce a book, who then work hard to sell it in hopes of breaking even and being able to make their next book. And yes, “breaking even” is the term I heard most often from those involved when the subject turned to the economics of publishing.

The Publishers were moved behind the galleries this year.

The big news this year for this group was their repositioning. Last year, they were in the front of the southern side of Pier 94. This year, they were in the back, directly behind the galleries and in front of a food section and seating. This meant you had to walk through the galleries to get to the book section.  It allowed for more space around each table, which made it easier for visitors to peruse the items on the tables. I asked a good number of the publishers how they felt about the change and the new location and the consensus was mixed.

Aperture’s booth was run by Director of Sales and Marketing Kellie McLaughlin, left, who was on hand for the entire show, while her terrific show, Aperture Photographs, tracing 50 years of Aperture’s print program, was up in their 27th Street gallery, a mecca in NYC Photography.

Straddling the line, in more ways than one, between the galleries, the publishers, as well as Photographers, was the legendary Aperture Foundation, founded in 1952, one of the most important and respected Photography organizations in the world. They provide support to Photographers in all phases of their careers, which extends into their gallery careers. For these reasons, Aperture’s presence at AIPAD is essential, in my view. They were back and their booth was located between the gallery and publisher areas, featuring books, prints and special editions, with their Director of Sales and Marketing, Kellie McLaughlin on hand all five days. If you have any PhotoBooks in your space, the odds are high you have at least one Aperture book among them.

Lesley A. Martin, right, one of the most well-known editors in Photography hosts Aperture’s popular PhotoBook Spotlight.

Meanwhile, Aperture’s Lesley A. Martin, the well known editor and publisher of the PhotoBook Review, hosted the popular PhotoBook Spotlight in the adjoining space.

Light Work packs em in.

Near Aperture was Light Work, from Syracuse, NY, another important Photo organization who boasts a staggering list of the Photographers who have done residences at the non-profit since 1973 that includes Cindy Sherman, Magnum Photo’s Matt Black and Gregory Halpern, Anthony Hernandez, Deana Lawson, Christian Patterson, Lucas Foglia, Carrie Mae Weems, and the “star” of AIPAD, 2019, Dawoud Bey, among hundreds of others.

10×10 PhotoBooks is another non-profit dedicated to fostering engagement with and among the global PhotoBook community. They also publish fine books of their own, including 10×10 Japanese PhotoBooks, which I have my eye on.

While non-profits Aperture and Light Work both featured books and prints, among the businesses, perhaps no presenter attending this year’s AIPAD straddled the line between gallery and publisher more evenly than Only-photography, of Berlin, Germany, run by Roland Angst.

Only-photography’s Roland Angst, to the right of center, in his firm’s booth surrounded by classic Photographs and state of the art books, right.

In the gallery section, where Only-photography was situated, Mr. Angst’s firm showed off a terrific range of first rate, even historic, PhotoBooks, AND a stunning selection of original prints by the likes of Luigi Ghirri(!), and rare, vintage portfolios by Daido Moriyama and Issei Suda, who, sadly, passed away barely a month earlier, on March 7th, 2019, one month short of his 80th birthday.

The real deal. These original, signed prints by Luigi Ghirri which stopped me in my tracks at Only-photography, were among the highlights of the entire show.

Only-photography is the only publisher known to me who have signed & numbered copies of books by Ray K. Metzker, who passed away in 2014, and Mr. Suda still available (Hurry!). At AIPAD, they debuted their newest book, the beautiful America Revisited, by the esteemed Swedish Photographer Gerry Johansson, in a signed & limited edition of 500 copies.

Roland Angst, left, shows Ray K. Metzker Unknown to legendary gallerist, Laurence Miller, Mr. Metzker’s friend, dealer for two decades, and one the leading authorities on the work of Ray K. Metzker.

Mr. Angst also proudly showed off his new Ray K. Metzker Unknown, released in 333 numbered copies containing images selected by Mr. Angst that appeared to be moving briskly. (My recent look at Ray K. Metzker at Howard Greenberg Gallery is here.)

A wall of Only-photography’s exceedingly collectible books includes titles that are already rising in price.

All the other publishers were in the Publishers and Photo Organizations section.

34 publishers or organizations were on hand this year, down slightly from last year, but that was impossible to tell without a head count as the new space around each table made the area, in total, feel very big. The main complaint I heard were from those with tables near the back of this space, feeling that they received less visitors than those closer to the front, though steady traffic headed to the back to the food area right behind.

The back row of the PhotoBook area.

I witnessed the back tables being “less busy” repeatedly over the 5 days I was there. However, MACK Books was positioned near the back row and their space was continually busy. Then again? For my money, MACK’s recent offerings may be pushing the company to #1 in the world right now. (At least among those books that continually, actually, get released in the USA.) Apparently, a good many others agree, and made a point of stopping by their table. They were rewarded with surprises! Shockingly, among the recent releases on display were copies of Per Strada by Guido Guidi and The Castle by Richard Mosse, both sold out and currently commanding 200% markups on the aftermarket. Also tucked in the display were two out of print books by Alec Soth, including a SEALED COPY of the extremely rare Open Manual, the first time I’ve seen a copy in person. (MACK’s asking price? US$2,000.00. Their copy does not include the hollowed out old book),.

Look! It’s an extremely rare copy of Alec Soth’s classic Broken Manual hiding between copies of the also out of print Gathered Leaves, at MACK.

Right next to it were two copies of his wonderful compilation Gathered Leaves, which has been out of print a few years now. MACK super-staffer Morgan Crowcroft-Brown smiled when she replied to my shock saying they were from “MACK’s secret vault,” and smiled, again, when I asked if I could visit it. The two vintage Alec Soth titles were right next to signed copies of Mr. Soth’s brand new MACK release, I Know How Furiously Your Heart Is Beating, all of which had disappeared the very next time I looked.

Chris Pichler, founder and publisher of the renowned Nazraeli Press, one of the leading independent publishers since 1989 was on hand to meet customers and answer enquiries.

Due to the finances involved, most PhotoBooks are printed in very small editions- 1,000 copies of any given book is a lot, and most books printed in editions of that size and larger are left to the bigger publishers, who have the best distribution, to produce. Smaller companies may make 300-500 copies of a book (often less), quickly sell out of it and immediately move on to their next project. You have to be quick if you want to get one of these, and AIPAD is part of a network of book fairs around the world during the year that provide a primary means of keeping up to date with the latest releases. For NYC, the Publishers and Photo Organizations section of AIPAD is the best opportunity all year long in the City to see the largest number of PhotoBook publishers and their wares in one place2

“These guys,” the gent belonging to the arm on the right was saying as I shot this picture of Satoshi, left, and Takashi, of Akio Nagasawa, one of the leading contemporary Japanese Photobook publishers who have a longstanding, close relationship with the legendary Daido Moriyama, among many others.

Many familiar faces from the first two years of the publisher participation in AIAPD returned in 2019, led by big names Germany’s legendary Steidl, D.A.P., and MACK Books, London,  along with Damiani, Nazraeli Press and TBW Books, among the leading independents, renowned Japanese publisher Akio Nagasawa, as well as TIS Books, Yoffy Press, Minor Matters, Kris Graves Projects, Converyor Editions and Japan’s Super Labo. There was so much to see in the Book Dealers, Publishers, and Photography-Related Organizations, I spent about half of my time over my 5 days here, resulting in their own piece in my coverage of AIPAD, 2019.

Keep your eye on TIS Books. Co-Publishers & fine Artists in their own rights, Tim Carpenter, left and Nelson Chan, have gotten off to a most auspicious start, which includes books of their work and Rose Marie Cromwell’s El Libro Supremo De La Suerte, a sensation which made my NoteWorthy PhotoBooks, 2018 list . Both Messers Carpenter & Chan also have wonderful books in the new LOST II, seen below.

Any number of Photographers made appearances, once again, at publisher tables supporting and signing their recent and brand new releases. Along with that, company principles were actually on hand during some or all of the run of the show! These included Michael Mack of MACK Books, Michelle Dunn Marsh founder of Minor Matters, Paul Schiek and Lester Rosso, heads of TBW Books, Monika Condrea, Head of Business Development and Communications of Steidl, Nelson Chan and Tim Carpenter of TIS Books and Kris Graves of Kris Graves Projects, providing a unique opportunity to “talk to the boss,” make a pitch, get firsthand backstories, or give product feedback.

Karine Laval holds a freshly signed copy of her first PhotoBook, Poolscapes, which presents her decade long study of pools in the USA and Europe, revealing their abstract and representational possibilities in a uniquely difused, vibrant palette, and published by no less than Steidl on April 5th.

Among the Photographers I saw signing books in this area were Karine Laval, at Steidl, Marina Font at Minor Matters,  Louie Palu at Joffy Press, Jules Slutsky, Zun Lee, Nelson Chan, Tim Carpenter and Kris Graves signing their books from LOST II and Mikhail Mishin, signing Endless Bridge all at Kris Graves Projects. There were numerous signings at MACK and others at Steidl that I missed.

Carlo Brady of Photo-eye, Santa Fe, NM, who brought a very nice selection of both new and limited edition books, and also hosted book signings. They had a second booth where they showed prints by Reuben Wu.

Barbara Bosworth proudly signs her majestic new PhotoBook The Heavens at Photo-eye on April 6th. I was lucky to pick up a copy of her wonderful Moonlight, for Rosemary, which also features her ethereal skyscapes.

In a space with so many very good books to consider, a few new ones stood out to me. Among the especially NoteWorthy PhotoBooks I saw, the highlight for me was finally getting to see the actual, physical, 20 volumes of Kris Graves Projects LOST II, after having written about it at length while it was in production, the first time I’ve ever written about books I hadn’t actually seen.

THE highlight of the new PhotoBook releases at AIPAD, 2019 was the debut of LOST II, the 20 volume set(!) published by Kris Graves Projects, almost all of it is seen here, along with its spiffy slipcase.

Having called the set “monumental,” I uttered an audible sigh of relief when the actual books impressed me every bit as much as the previews I’d seen. At this point? I strongly feel it’s a landmark set for KGP, and I believe it’s going to be the most highly sought after publication KGP has yet released, one that will be trading for multiples of the $350.00 issue price in no time, given only 60 complete sets are being released. Also, if you are interested in the individual volumes? Fewer than 100 copies of each will be available, and after the five days of AIPAD AND the three days of the LA Art Book Fair the week after? I doubt many remain.

Publisher & Photographer Kris Graves proudly holds a slipcased complete set of the 20 volumes of LOST II. Get a good look at it now because with only 60 sets published? You will rarely see it in the future.

Joffy Press got my attention with two new and recent books by documentary Photographer and Filmmaker Louie Palu, Front Towards Enemy and A Field Guide to Asbestos, two of the most intense and important new books I saw at AIPAD. Both books also stood out for their unique conceptions and production. Mr. Palu was on hand over parts of 2 days to talk about his book and sign copies, and he cordially agreed to answer some questions for me about them. So, I’m thrilled to say that Mr. Palu will be featured in my AIPAD Discovery piece for 2019, along with an AIPAD Focus feature piece on Michelle Dunn Marsh, founder of Minor Matters publishing company, and the woman who curated the All Power: Visual Legacies if the Black Panther Party special exhibition at AIPAD in 2018! Ms. Marsh is a lady who has worn many hats in Photography and PhotoBook publishing over her 20+ year career and is one of those I continually look to for what’s new in Photography. I’ve been wanting to write about her for over a years, so I’m thrilled to be able to bring her to NHNYC readers shortly!

Among other NoteWorthy new releases I saw, TBW Books, Oakland, debuted the new book, Arena, by Jeff Mermelstein, a large book that documents the first 350 events taking place at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center and Steidl previewed the new collaboration by Teju Cole and Fazal Sheikh titled Human Archipelago.

Books were included in some of the gallery spaces, as I touched on in my gallery piece. Danny Lyon signed at Etherton Gallery’s booth and Ryan Vizzions signed his new book, NO SPIRITUAL SURRENDER- A Dedication to the Standing Rock Movement at Monroe Gallery. While Mr. Lyon’s books are well known to PhotoBook lovers, I will mention, again, that Ryan Vizzions’ book is particularly NoteWorthy and one to be sought out while copies are available. In his book, Mr. Vizzions Photos are paired with texts written by 6 women of the Oceti Sakowin, who were the first organizers of the movement, adding a depth that no writer who wasn’t there could achieve.

Once again, the Publishers and Photo Organizations section of AIPAD proved to be a must-see section for all the reasons I’ve touched on. Beyond the extremely varied and essential work the Organizations do, PhotoBooks provide an essential compliment to and extension of the galleries, (some of who are involved in the publication of catalogues and monographs on the Photographers they represent and show), enhancing and adding to the images hanging on their walls. When you add in all the other Photographers who don’t currently have gallery representation that appear in PhotoBooks, they also serve to complete a picture of what’s going on in Modern & Contemporary Photography today.

Therefore, the gallery section and the Publishers and Photo Organizations sections of AIPAD work together in ways that, it seems to me, benefits both of them.

*- Soundtrack for this Post is “Photograph” by Ed Sheehan.

As I did in 2017 and 2018, I’m pleased to present extensive coverage of The Photography Show, 2019, aka AIPAD. This is part 2 of my coverage of the 2019 show. Part 1, which focuses on the galleries, is here. Two to three more parts are coming. Stay tuned!

My thanks to all the Photographers, publishers and galleries who appear in this Post, and to Monika Condrea and Margery Newman for their assistance. 

NighthawkNYC.com has been entirely self-funded and ad-free for over 6 years, during which over 250 full length pieces have been published. If you’ve found it worthwhile, you can donate to keep it going & ad-free below. Thank you!

Written & photographed by Kenn Sava for nighthawknyc.com unless otherwise credited.
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  1. Yes, as Messers Badger, Parr and Roth point out there are other Americans as well as Photographers in other countries who have made PhotoBooks of the highest quality and importance.
  2. Printed Matter’s MoMA PS1 NY Art Book Fair is bigger but it is exactly that- it includes Art Books of all kinds, of which PhotoBooks are a relatively small part.

The Photography Show, AIPAD 2018- Coverage Page

Let the show begin! Just after opening, Noon on Thursday, April 5th, 2018. Click for full size.

Once again in 2018, for the second year in a row, I’m proud to bring you THE most extensive coverage of The Photography Show, aka AIPAD, available anywhere. This page summarizes my coverage and contains links to the 4 Posts I’ve written on it in order-

#1-
The Photography Show- AIPAD, 2018

#2-
The Photography Show: Memorable Meetings, 2018

#3-
The Photography Show Discoveries: Jeanine Michna-Bales

#4-
The Photography Show Discoveries: Kris Graves

The Photography Show/AIPAD, 2018 is my NoteWorthy show for April.

My coverage of The Photography Show, AIPAD, 2017 may be found here.

NighthawkNYC.com has been entirely self-funded & ad-free for over 7 years, during which over 275 full length pieces have been published!
I can no longer fund it myself. More on why here.
If you’ve found it worthwhile, PLEASE donate to keep it online & ad-free below.
Thank you, Kenn.

Written & photographed by Kenn Sava for nighthawknyc.com unless otherwise credited.
To send comments, thoughts, feedback or propositions click here.
Click the white box on the upper right for the archives or to search them.
Subscribe to be notified of new Posts below. Your information will be used for no other purpose.

The Photography Show Discoveries: Kris Graves

Special Exhibitions have become a welcome part of The Photography Show/AIPAD, and 2018 proved no different. Particularly innovative was “All Power: Legacies of the Black Panther Party,” a show inspired by the 50th Anniversary of the founding of the Black Panther Party branch in Seattle, Washington, terrifically curated by Michelle Dunn-Marsh, Executive Director of Photographic Center Northwest, Seattle.

The entrance sign, listing the Artists included along side the Black Panther logo. Click any Photo for full size.

While I highlighted the marvelous work of LaToya Ruby Frazier, and others, in my first piece in this now 4 part series on AIPAD, 2018, among those unknown to me in this exhibition (and elsewhere in AIPAD for that matter), I was particularly taken by this quartet of Photographs by Kris Graves.

Kris Graves, Clockwise from top left- “The Murder of Philando Castile, Falcon Heights, Minnesota,” “The Murder of Michael Brown, Ferguson, Missouri,” “The Murder of Walter Scott, Charleston, South Carolina”  and “The Murder of Eric Garner, Staten Island, New York” from “A Bleak Reality,” 2016.

The images depict the sites where 4 black men were killed by police officers between 2014 and 2016. The quiet poignancy of these works, a notable, and remarkable, contrast to the high pitch all around us today grabbed me hard. Three of the pieces, “The Murder of Philando Castile,” upper left, “The Murder of Michael Brown,” upper right, and “The Murder of Eric Garner,” lower left, contain visible reminders of what happened here in the form of memorials. “The Murder of Walter Scott,” lower right, does not (as far as I can tell). Though the events are in the past, what remains are the media of the actual events and the memories of them. As such, they fit perfectly into the concept of a show about “legacy.” This series, created after, serves to remind us that what happened in each of these seemingly mundane locations, spread throughout the country, can happen anywhere.

As Photographs of an Artist new to me I was also taken with his approach. It says “look at this,” instead of telling you what to think, but it makes me wonder what the Artist is thinking as we see through his eyes. Instead of close-ups of the exact spots, there is a distance in each shot, that makes them each “landscapes,” I find fascinating and powerful. Stephen Shore, Robert Adams, and others, redefined the genre of American Landscape Photography after Ansel Adams and Edward Weston, et al, defined it earlier in the 20th Century, as they felt their predecessors had taken things about as far as they could in one direction. Since the American landscape was rapidly changing post-World War II, they created something that showed what they then saw around them. Kris Graves is one of those doing it, again now, in works like these1, though he returns the human element, which in these works is utterly profound- even when no people are present in 3 of the 4 Photographs. The absence of people echoes the absence of the murdered and leaves us, seemingly, the only ones there. Witnesses, after the fact.

Obviously, “All Power: Legacies of the Black Panther Party,” is a remarkably well done special exhibition. I reached out to its curator, Michelle Dunn-Marsh, to ask her about Mr. Graves inclusion in the show. She told me, “I met Kris at Photolucida last April having known of his work through Aperture, and in October Terry Novak and I did a studio visit with him. Shortly thereafter I invited him to consider participation in this exhibition, and he told me of the series we had on view at AIPAD. It was powerful in not only content but also adding a landscape dimension to the exhibition, which is predominantly figurative, so his work, Sadie Barnette’s FBI documents, Ouida Bryson’s still life and Christopher Paul Jordan’s collage were additive on multiple levels. I think Kris has received a lot of attention for his portraits so it was also an opportunity to bring awareness to other bodies of work he has created.”

Before I left the exhibition, I noticed the lower part of the nearby info card.

 

Not only is Mr. Graves an accomplished and formidable Artist, he is ALSO a Book Publisher! AND? He has a booth in the PhotoBook area! It just so happened that the gentleman manning the information table at “All Power” had bought a copy of Mr. Graves latest publication, “LOST Omaha,” and urged me to look at it. I was immediately impressed by its quality, and the quality of the Photographs by Zora J. Murff. It looks and feel different than 90% of PhotoBooks I see, and at 28.00 the gentleman felt it was cheap. Cheap in price is not a term I hear applied often to new PhotoBooks. Hmmm…

“LOST Omaha,” by Zora J. Murff, the first book I saw published by Kris Graves Projects.

Overnight I did my customary “getting up to speed” research after being taken with the work of an Artist I previously didn’t know, (as I did with last year’s AIPAD “Discovery,” Gregory Halpern), and my initial impression was, again, confirmed. On his site, krisgraves.com, I saw an Artist who’s taking new approaches to a wide range of genres, from the portrait to landscapes, as well as someone who’s making real contributions to moving the ball ahead when it comes to representations of people of color in his work, and the resulting gallery and museum shows. I found that “A Bleak Reality” had been commissioned by Vanity Fair, in September, 2016. More of the series may be seen here. More recently, in March of this year, Mr. Graves documented each and every one of NYC’s 77 Police Precincts(!), something I doubt many people who live here, like me, have ever seen more than one or two of. They are, typically, fascinating. As Photographs, some remind me of Bernd & Hilla Becher, but as in all his work, Kris Graves has his own style, and as I looked at more and more of his work, I began to feel the Artist’s preference for observing at a distance present in much of his work.

Kris Graves is someone who sees the big picture.

Kris Graves, “Road to Skaftafell,” 2010, from “Discovered Missing,” 2013. On the road…in Iceland.

Moving over to his publishing site, krisgravesprojects.com, I looked at his 2013 monograph, “Discovered Missing.” Though the Photographs were taken in Iceland the style reminded me of “A Bleak Reality” at AIPAD. After Mr. Graves’ work draws you in to “look at this,” his images retain your attention. Still looking becomes meditating.

“Yellow Hats, Kyoto, Japan,” 2005, from “Permanance,” 2012

His work is beautiful, cerebral, both ethereal and earthy, grounded in the streets, while it reaches beyond, and expresses…well, that’s up to each viewer. His landscapes are often blessed with a feeling of the miraculous moment of discovery- the perfect scene of the empty dollar store parking lot in front of the breathtaking mountains behind, or, we’re on a cliff looking down on a group of Japanese in yellow hats, or the perfect spot to catch a majestic cliff towering over a distant lighthouse, or a two lane blacktop on an open expanse of flat road that seems to be leading to a distant mountain, partially shrouded in clouds. In many of these works, the recurrent element of distance fascinates me.

“Family Dollar, Taos, New Mexico,” 2009, from “Permanence,” 2012

Some are odd juxtapositions, almost like stories with two parts. They’re partially works that could be called “New Topographic,” but they’re not. Boxes don’t fit here (or with any Artwork really). They’re scenes from a near and foreign world, where even what’s seemingly “familiar” seems strange. Kris Graves gets us to look at our surroundings while not allowing us to feel comfortable in our assumptions. Instead, it’s like he’s sharing his observations and making us think about what we’re seeing.

“R.I.P. 5Pointz, Long Island City, 2013,from “LOST LIC.” Courtesy of the Artist and Kris Graves Projects. 5Pointz was a mural space on Davis Street that was demolished in 2014, after efforts to save it failed.

His colors also fascinate. They, too, are characters in what we see. In his landscapes, they serve to convey mood, or to create a dialogue between sections of a work.

“Jessica,” 2016, 11 s 14″ Archival pigment print, from “Testament Project, Volume 03.”

But then, in his innovative series of portraits, “The Testament Project,” the Artist gave control of the lighting to his subjects.

From “Testament Project, Volume 03,” by Kris Graves, essay by Carrie Robbins, PhD.

“By including subjects in the creation of the scene and altering of color, I seek to create Photographs that portray individuality in addition to their blackness,” he’s quoted saying on his site. His portraits also show us another side, of the subject, in a way I’ve never seen attempted before, which given the millennia long history of portraiture is no mean feat. To this point, Artists have had the complete control over their subject’s appearance. In Kris Graves’ “Testament Project,” he emphasizes the individuality of the subject by giving them control of the lighting, which allows him or her to become part of the actual creation of their portrait. This, too, can be said to be observing from a distance.

Photographer & Publisher, Kris Graves here figuratively wearing his Publisher’s hat, proudly displaying the new 10 volume set, “LOST,” his Kris Graves Projects just released at his +KGP table in the book area.

Sunday, April 8th, I headed over to the Kris Graves Projects booth at AIPAD, and lo and behold, there was Mr. Graves, himself, like Gilles Lorin, Stephen Wilkes, and Mr. Tony Vaccaro (as seen in Part 2), patiently answering questions from anyone else who happened by, including a never ending stream of folks who seemed quite familiar with Mr. Graves and his work. While I was standing there, an Artist came by and actually pitched a book project to him.

So, wait. Just who is Kris Graves? He’s an NYC native now based here and in London. He received his BFA from SUNY Purchase and has had his work displayed at the National Portrait Gallery, London, Blue Sky Gallery, Portland (where Kris Graves is now on the Board of Directors. Christopher Rauschenberg, Robert’s son, is President), and the Brooklyn Museum. In 2017, he was among 5 Shortlisted for the prestigious Aperture Portfolio Prize, out of 700 porfolios reviewed. His Art is in the collections of said Brooklyn Museum, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and his Publications are in the collections of the Watson Library at The Metropolitan Museum, the Guggenheim Museum, Yale University Library and the Whitney Museum Library. He has been showing his work since 2006, with his most recent solo show at the University of Arizona, 2017. There are currently 38 Publications on the Kris Graves Projects Online Store, including 6 marked “Sold Out,” as I write. Of the total, “only” 9 are of his Photography.

After my overnight research, I was interested in his monographs, “Discovered Missing,” 2013, consisting of Photographs taken in Iceland, and “Permanence,” 2012, Photographs from 2003-12. Faced with the items on the table, above, I didn’t see them. So? I asked for them. He produced a copy of “Permanence” from the row of standing books on the far left! It’s the red book that’s peeking out, second from the front.

Wait.

WHAT Artist pays for a booth at AIPAD and then doesn’t prominently display his own work? (Ok, yes, his publications are “his work” as well, I grant that. I’m referring to his Photography, which others, like myself, might just be discovering at the show.) The only reason I left with 2 of Mr. Graves books was by knowing I wanted them going in, and I HAD TO ASK FOR THEM! And? In both cases, he told me that they were the very last copies!

Hmmmm…

They’re not prominently on display, but they just sold out. Wow. I’m not the only one taken by Mr. Graves Photography. Late to the party, again. And? I’m about to be as impressed by his publishing. Let’s take a closer look at that Photo of Mr. Graves and exactly what IS on his KGP table at AIPAD, shall we?

A closer look.

Heres’ what I saw. The new 10 volume set, “LOST,” consisting of a series of books, each featuring one city was front and center as it is newly completed and being debuted and offered as a Limited Edition of 25 Box Set at a special price at the show. Mr. Graves is proudly holding a set, with the newest volume, “LOST Omaha,” in the front. He should be proud of it.

“Let’s get LOST,” to paraphrase Chet Baker. By all means, do, but this set is now mine.

As you can see, the 10 volumes of “LOST” are “LOST New York” (with Photos by Lynn Saville), “LOST LIC” (Long Island City)(Photos by Kris Graves), “LOST Berlin” (Photos by Andreas Gehrke), “LOST Calcutta” (Photos by Laura McPhee), “LOST San Francisco” (Photos by Luke A. Abiol), “LOST Chicago” (Photos by Owen Conway), “LOST Boston” (Photos by Michael Cardinali), “LOST Beijing” (Photos by Lois Conner), “LOST Seattle (Photos by Joseph P. Traina), and “LOST Omaha” (Photos by Zora J. Murff)- which completed the series). Each is prominently shown. To the left, with the green lines are other KGP Publications, including “These Americans,” by Mercedes Jelinek, “all that cannot be said,” by Colin Stearns, “Bless Your Heart,” by Grant Ellis, “A Place to Disappear,” by Pablo Lerma and “Blood Line” by Anne-Laure Autin.” The first book in the vertical stack on the right is the last copy of “Provisional Scenery,” 2015 by Kris Graves, his other monograph that I purchased.

Can you match the cover image with the city? Time’s up. Top row, left to right- “LOST Beijing,” “LOST L.I.C.,””LOST Calcutta,””LOST Boston,”and “LOST Berlin.” Bottom row- “LOST Chicago,””LOST San Francisco,””LOST Seattle,””LOST New York,” and “LOST Omaha.”

The Artists he publishes are Photographers Mr. Graves told me he has “known for a while.” In “LOST,” through each Photographer’s work, we visit the subject city as if we’re “lost” in each place, without a GPS. Few famous landmarks are Photographed, yet, the sense of each place is undeniable. Some of what is seen could be seen anywhere. But it’s not. Its all organically specific to the place its in. These images created by 10 individual, poetic, sets of eyes, are brought together and unified under the singular vision of their publisher, and in that sense, they are truly collaborations. I found the results to be uniformly strong throughout all 10 books, As you move from book to book, from city to city, Mr. Graves overall concept of the series combines with the difference in the Artist’s styles, and content, to create the set’s overall impression and make for a wonderful internal dialogue that holds them together as a “set.” As such, it’s the ultimate “anti-travelogue.” No one is going to go to any of these cities looking for most of these sites. As in his Photography, Mr. Graves is something of a “visionary observer,” at a bit of a distance, here, too, in my view.

The Artist told me he named it in honor of how he felt after he left his job at the Guggenheim Museum. It’s a good thing he told me that, because looking at the set, the direction, focus and execution of the entire project is ANYthing BUT “LOST.” It not only feels like he knows EXACTLY what he’s doing, but how to pull it off, how to seamlessly meld such disparate visions into a cohesive, unique whole. Since Mr. Graves said he’s known these Artists for a while, perhaps that familiarity enabled him to know what he was going to get and how that part would fit into the whole. Whatever the case is, the results are remarkable, and highly recommended.

Kris Graves, left, Artist Michael Cardinali author of “LOST Boston,” in the white shirt, right, and Artist Lynn Saville, author of “LOST New York” in black, behind him, at the “LOST” Book Release in LIC on April 14th.

After AIPAD ended, I went to the Book Release for “LOST” in Long Island City, where I bought one of the 25 sets to get the full effect and to familiarize myself with the Artists involved. As good as the individual books are, I now think it really is best experienced as a set. Having had it a week, my feeling is that’s there is a surprisingly high bar that’s maintained throughout, both in the work and its presentation. Having been, briefly, to only 2(!) of the 8 other cities (NYC gets two books), I can only speak about NYC.

Luckily, among the Artists at the Book Release was the accomplished Photographer, Lynn Saville, author of “LOST New York,” who also teaches at both the NYU School of Professional Studies (NYU SPS) and at the International Center of Photography (ICP). Ms. Saville has three monographs published by three major publishers- Rizzoli, Random House and Damiani. I asked her about her involvement in “LOST,” and she said, “He approached me to be a part of his series…and I was intrigued. The timing worked out- and I’m proud to be the “New York” in this series. Another nice thing was the quickness of it – and the other artists – Laura McPhee and Lois Conner and several other photography artists – I really like the off-beat selection of cities and the scope of it…. They are like artist’s books – and the box set is very nice.”

Lost, from “LOST New York.” You now have to look at Lynn Saville’s work to see this view of Grand Central Station and the Chrysler Building along East 42nd Street since the Vanderbilt skyscraper has gone up right in the front. It’s cropped on the cover, but this full image is inside her new “LOST New York.” Courtesy of the Artist and Kris Graves Projects.

In Lynn Seville’s “LOST New York,” there are some familiar sights. Or were. This spot near Grand Central Station on the cover of “LOST New York” is now filled by a gigantic skyscraper that’s gone up in the interim. Its “Lost” in a different way. This view is now lost. Ms Seville told me that person who’s window this is complained about that very fact.

Lynn Saville, from “LOST NYC.” Courtesy of the Artist and Kris Graves Projects.

I asked her what went into her decisions as to what to include in “LOST NYC” and how to sequence them. She told me, “In choosing pictures for and sequencing this book, I sought to include each of the various strands of my past work. Also, I was influenced by my recent commission from the MTA, Arts & Design (her work is being shown in a solo pubic art exhibition at Grand Central Terminal), which involved photographing the western façade of Grand Central Terminal, newly exposed to view by the beginnings of construction at One Vanderbilt Avenue. These pictures, one of which appears on the book’s front cover, recalled my initial interest in the city’s iconic structures. For me, therefore, the book is a polyphonic weaving of my various ways of seeing and engaging with the city.”

Kris Graves signs his out of print “Discovered Missing,” 2013 for another guest at the “LOST” Launch.

When I saw his “A Bleak Reality” works in “All Power,” I noticed the info card, pictured earlier, has his birthdate. Not caring all that much about age I didn’t do the math. I only noticed that Kris Graves is in his 3rd decade and the second number was not a big one. Think about this for one minute-

In a show as big as AIPAD which includes 100 of the world’s leading Photo galleries going toe to toe presenting their finest work, it’s INCREDIBLY hard to be noticed as a young Artist alongside the likes of Diane Arbus, Robert Frank, Gordon Parks, Atget, Ansel Adams, Walker Evans, William Eggleston, Bruce Davidson, Daido Moriyama, Robert Capa, and on and on and on. In a PhotoBook area that includes the likes of Steidl, Mack, Akio Nagasawa, TBW Books, Art Book DAP, Damiani, Minor Matters, and Aperture, a small, independent, Artist-run Publishing company is there, WITH the Artist/Publisher in attendance EVERY DAY, selling out of multiple titles of quality books.

For ONE young person to be doing BOTH of those things, successfully at AIPAD? It’s just unheard of. That’s why Kris Graves struck me as THE Artist & Publisher discovery of AIPAD, 2018.

There will be those who will look at all of this and say. “Wow. Kris Graves has a bright future.”

I look at it and say- The future is now.

*-Soundtrack for this Post is “Let’s Get Lost,” by Chet Baker, which you can hear here.

My thanks to Kris Graves, Lynn Saville, Michelle Dunn-Marsh, and the gentleman manning the “All Power” Booth on Saturday, April 6th.

The Photography Show/AIPAD, 2018, is my NoteWorthy Show for April.

This is the last of my 4 Posts on AIPAD, 2018. Once again, for the second year, I’m proud to bring you THE most extensive coverage of The Photography Show anywhere. The rest of it is here. My 2017 coverage is here.

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  1. As I mentioned in Part 1 feeling that one of LaToya Ruby Frazier’s works in the show does as well.

The Photography Show- AIPAD, 2018

There’s no “swim suit” for this vast sea of images. Just dive right in. Arthur Elgort, “Stella Diving, Watermill, Long Island,” 1995, seen at Staley Wise Gallery at The Photography Show. Click any Photo for full size.

The 2018 edition of “The Photography Show,” (commonly called “AIPAD,” the acronym of The Association of International Photography Dealers, the organization that presents it), was a week later than last year’s blockbuster, though much else was the same. I’m not surprised. As I said in the last of the 4 pieces I devoted to 2017’s show, there was little to complain about from this visitor’s perspective, so I very much anticipated this year’s model.

It did not disappoint.

The highlight of the NYC Photo Year beckons. Don’t let the small entrance fool you. A vast show awaits inside.

It returned to the same familiar, cavernous, space known as Pier 94, on the Hudson River, and it reprised many of last year’s popular features, including a Publisher, PhotoBook Dealer & Photography Organizations area, a dedicated “AIPAD Talks” area, a “PhotoBook Spotlight” area, and new this year, an AIPAD Screening Room featured films by Photographers, or relating to Photography.

“Say Cheese.” The view from above right before the opening bell on Thursday at noon. Even a panorama can’t capture the whole of AIPAD.

Though, by my count, there were about 20 fewer dealers than last year (103 vs 123 comparing this year’s guide to 2017’s. AIPAD, itself, reported 96 this year1), given the enormous size of the show, it’s highly unlikely that anyone who didn’t make a count would have realized it- there was still too much to see in one visit. I made four, spending all of Thursday, Friday, Saturday & Sunday exploring it. Still, I’m sure I missed something. 

The Floor Plan.

What I did see impressed me quite a bit. In the next piece, I’ll take a look at highlights. First, here’s an overview.

“Something for everyone,” the show’s Press Release said.

The best thing about AIPAD for me is that nowhere else in NYC all year long can so many very good, great, and even classic Photographs be seen in one place. You would have to spend weeks walking around the city’s galleries and Big Five Museums to come close. But? Even then, you wouldn’t come close. AIPAD provides the opportunity to see what Artists from around the world are doing; to discover new Artists, and to see beautiful examples of classic Photographs, both familiar and known only through books or legend.

f64. Robert Mann, left, stands outside his renowned gallery’s booth, Catherine Edelman Gallery, equally renowned Chicago dealer, right, with Gallery f5.6, Germany, Gallery 19/21 from Conn., further on the left, and the fascinating Legacy of the Black Panthers 50th Anniversary Exhibition further back on the right.

While Aaron Siskind, Alfred Steiglitz, Edward Weston, Berenice Abbott, Ansel Adams, Atget and Kertesz were among the classic Artists being shown at the most booths (per the guide), there was a very impressive amount of lesser known Artists who presented quite strong work, in an extremely wide range of styles and genres– from the literally unknown, like these-

Unknown Artist, “Selection from a Speedway Photograph Portfolio” on display at Harper’s Books booth.

To some of the most famous Photographs ever taken-

Well? Almost. Ansel Adams, “Moonrise Over Hernandez (Cancelled),” 1941, printed circa 1969. This print was created in Ansel Adams’ darkroom on what turned out to be defective Ilfobrom paper. As a result, they were marked “Cancelled” with a machine used in banking and then sent to Ilford to demonstrate the flaws in the paper. Seen at Scott Nichols Gallery.

Great works by revered names…

Henri Cartier-Bresson, “Rue De Bassano, 8th Arrondissement, Paris, 1953” seen at Contemporary Works/Vintage Works.

Sally Mann, “Naptime,” 1989, seen at Edwynn Houk Gallery is the subject of a current retrospective at the National Gallery of Art, Washington.

Robert Frank, “US 285, New Mexico, 1955,” from his enduring classic PhotoBook, “The Americans.” Seen at Howard Greenberg Gallery.

The Photographs in Painter Ed Ruscha’s “Gasoline Stations Portfolio,” 1962, weren’t even taken as “serious Photography” by the Artist when he took them. 56 years later, they’re some of the most influential Photographs taken since. Seen at Bruce Silverstein.

To surprises from Artists previously seen, like this wonderful wall of work by Jeff Brouws which channels the classic work of Bernd & Hilla Becher…

Jeff Brouws, “Coaling Tower series,” 2013-17, seen at Robert Mann Gallery. Apologies for the glare. Like the Becher’s classic series, Mr. Brouws has Photographed in the same weather and lighting conditions they always used.

To work previously not known to me that impressed…

Gohar Dashti, “Home (series),” 2017, at Robert Klein Gallery

Or…

Omar Imam, “Untitled, 2017 (serene place),” from his powerful “Syrialism” series at Catherine Edelman Gallery.

This year’s show also included special exhibitions, including this one, curated by Sir Elton John, titled “A Time For Reflection”-

Sir Elton John curated this selection from AIPAD member galleries titled “A Time For Reflection.” Included is Gordon Parks’ “American Gothic,” near the right corner, which can be seen in my recent Post about Mr. Parks just concluded shows.

Another special exhibition was “All Power: Visual Legacies of the Black Panther Party,” from the book of the same name, presented by the Photographic Center Northwest, in honor of the 50th Anniversary of the founding of the Black Panther Party’s Seattle chapter.

Installation view of one corner of “All Power.” Work by Robert Wade, Gill Baker, Deborah Willis, and Lewis Watts among those seen here. The words are from Point 7 of the Black Panther Party Platform and Program, 1972.

It featured a very impressive roster of Artists, and I was particularly impressed by the works of LaToya Ruby Frazier’s, including 2 pieces from her poignant “The Grey Area,” about the demolition of the hospital in her home town in spite of efforts, that she was involved in and Photographed, to save it. The work “UPMC Global Corporation, 2011” from her series “The Grey Area,” especially struck me as I have been looking at a lot of work by the so called “New Topographics” Artists Lewis Baltz and Stephen Shore2. This work seems like a culmination of what those Artists were depicting in series like Lewis Baltz’ “New Industrial Parks Near Irving, California,” and “The Tract Houses,” in the 1970s.

LaToya Ruby Frazier, “UPMC Global Corporation, 2011” from her series “The Grey Area,” 2010-12, that documents the demolition of Braddock Hospital in her Pennsylvania home town, which she had been involved in trying to save.

One of the things I look forward to most about AIPAD is the chance to see what galleries from elsewhere in the world bring and display.

see + gallery, Beijing, China, left, Atlas Gallery, London, right, with Laurence Miller Gallery, NYC behind them, and Les filles du calvaire, Paris, France behind on the left.

As they did last year, many showed work completely new to me, and possibly a good many other show goers, like this-

Alfredo Jarr, “The Power of Words,” 1984, at Jean-Kenta Gauthier, Paris, France

Detail.

and this…

Raghu Rai, “A Photographer, The Wall Series, Delhi, 1973,” seen at TASVEER from Karnataka, India

and for the lover of modern vintage prints-

Two gorgeous examples by Eikoh Hosoe, “Ordeal by Roses, #29,” 1962, left and #16, 1961, right. Seen at IBASHO, Japan.

Making the rounds, the first thing that strikes you is the level of seriousness of the work on view. Almost nothing here is frivilous. Given the very significant cost of being here, the travel (some came from down the street, some from, literally, the other side of the world), the logistics, the hours involved in being at AIPAD- every single thing here is something someone significant in the Photography business believes is worthy of being here and being seen along side what everyone else feels should be seen here. So, the show provides fascinating insights into, and a barometer of, what so many leading dealers think about the Photography market and what’s selling, while balancing that with making a statement about the overall identity of their gallery. I find all of this endlessly fascinating. This year there was a distinct absence of the encroachment of “video,” or moving elements incorporated in Photography, which, to my eyes, has thus far come across as gimmicky. I much prefer seeing this-

Made using brand new “technology”… of the 16th century. Abelardo Morell, “Camera Obscura: The Philadelphia Museum of Art East Entrance in Gallery with a de Chirico Painting,” 2005. Light from outside (the exterior of the building) enters the darkened gallery seen above through a small hole, and is “projected” on the opposite wall, where the de Chirico hangs, upside down. At Edwynn Houk Gallery.

As you walk through AIPAD, you’ll find the work that doesn’t hold up to such “company” is in the extreme minority. to the contrary, you’re virtually guaranteed to discover a new Artist of interest you previously didn’t know.

Jean Pagliuso, 4 works from her “Owl” series, at Mary Ryan Gallery. Of course, anyone showing Owls, the Official Bird of NighthawkNYC, let alone these 4 beauties, was bound to catch my eye.

Then, there is the area devoted to Book Dealers, Publishers and Photography based Organizations, including Aperture, which held a steady stream of PhotoBook talks (in the area to the far right, below, with AIPAD Screenings just behind it in the far right corner) throughout the weekend. This area also hosted a steady stream of Booksignings and Book Launches, while also giving book collectors a chance to talk to a number of the world’s leading PhotoBook publishers, from bigger (Steidl, ArtBook DAP, Mack, Damiani, and Nazraeli), to specialty publishers TBW Books and Minor Matters, to Japanese Publishers, Akio Nagasawa and SUPER LABO among a number of others. The organizations also included Light Works, the Photography Collections Preservation Project, and the Florida Museum of Photographic Arts, who told me that their striking home doesn’t have plumbing!

The front of the Publishing and PhotoBook area. The show is so big, this large section of it isn’t even seen to the left of the panorama posted earlier.

Books have long ago secured their place as essential to Photographers and the world of Photography. In many, even most cases, they are the only way to see the work of the vast majority of Artists. Over time, they have become an “Art-form” unto themselves. For both reasons, it’s only natural, and in my opinion, critical, that they be included in AIPAD. The best PhotoBooks publishers (Gerhard Steidl, Chris Pichler of Nazraeli, Michael Mack of MACK, Paul Schiek of TBW Books, among them) are Artists themselves, either literally, or as bookmakers. The beauty and craft they bring to their work enhances the experience exponentially to the point that it’s an essential part of the experience of the work. In addition to these world-class publishers, intrepid book sellers, like Harper’s Books (who showed a spectacular collection of rare books and collectibles, seen in the center glass case in the Photo above) and Photo-eye (who featured the MASSIVE new Taschen book, “Murals of Tibet,” hand signed by H.H. The Dalai Lama, which starts at $12,000.00) were highlights. But, the “stars” of this area were many of the book booths offered exceedingly rare chances to meet, and have a book signed by, Artists including Susan Meiselas, Elliott Erwitt, Paul Graham, Ralph Gibson, Jungjin Lee, Gregory Halpern, Jason Fulford, and Dayanita Singh, among others.

In assessing the “world of Photography,” since AIPAD is so international in scope- in all of it’s dimensions, I’d be remiss if I didn’t make special mention of the renowned, non-profit, Aperture Foundation, who’s founders include Ansel Adams and Dorothea Lange, and who celebrated their 65th anniversary in 2017. In my opinion, through everything they do, they are one of the lynchpins of the Photography world. As is well known, they nurture up and coming Photographers who deserve wider attention, publish important PhotoBooks (“Stephen Shore” was one of the very best PhotoBooks I saw in 2017), put on terrific shows (like their recent “Prison Nation”), and publish often terrific limited edition prints by many of the leading lights of both contemporary and classic Photography at exceedingly reasonable prices.

Aperture’s PhotoBook Spotlight, this one featuring legendary Photographer, Paul Graham, center, who discussed his classic book “A Shimmer of Possibility.”

At the show, they ran a steady stream of PhotoBooks spotlights, which included Paul Graham, who’s “A Shimmer of Possibility,” (winner of the Paris Photo-Aperture Prize for the Best PhotoBook of the Last 15 Years in 2012), spoke about it on the debut of MACK’s third edition. In my opinion, everyone involved in Photography owes a debt to the Aperture Foundation, and I hope they support them through buying their books, prints and magazine, or making a donation. That’s my opinion, and no…they didn’t ask me to say that.

Nico Krijno, “Burning Wicker Chair,” 2011, a Huxley Parlour Gallery, London. The South African Photographer’s fascinating work is something I definitely have my eye on.

With so much to see, I strongly advise getting the multi-day ticket. Thursday is my favorite day to go and get acclimated. The weekend crowds haven’t arrived and you can actually talk to the dealers and booth holders and get some of the fascinating backstories behind what they’re showing. Things have a tendency to germinate in my mind overnight. I’ll see something I don’t know, then go home and research it or the Artist, and go back and see it again. Friday and Saturday things were steady and busy throughout, with the weather cooperating this year. Sunday seemed to me to be surprisingly busy. During my rounds on Sunday, within 2-3 hours of closing, most (not all) of the dealers I spoke with said the show was “Good,” or “Very good” for them, and I was surprised by how few expressed a negative sentiment. What this tells me, beyond how successful The Photography Show was (and there is no doubt it was) is that the Photography market remains robust, and signs of a downturn were not to be seen, as far as I could tell. This is good news for the Artists, particularly, as well as the dealers, of course. After it ended, AIPAD reported record attendance numbering over 15,0003.

Lisa Kereszi, “Gold Curtain, Poconos Resort, PA, 2004,” seen at Yancey Richardson Gallery.

As so? I look forward to the curtain going up on The Photography Show, 2019. But, don’t worry- The curtain is not coming down on my AIPAD 2018 coverage…yet. Stay tuned!

*- Soundtrack for this Post is “Take Me To The River,” by the great Al Green, which I actually said to a cab driver on Saturday. It can be seen in an early performance by Talking Heads here.

Uh-oh…Guess who’s back from their Winter Migration…

On The Fence, #18 – “The Wall Has Eyes” Edition. Celebrating the 1st Anniversary of my fine feathered friends and “On The Fence,” who debuted after AIAD, 2017.

The Photography Show/AIPAD, 2018, is my NoteWorthy Show for April.

Once again, for the second year, I’m proud to bring you THE most extensive coverage of The Photography Show anywhere. The rest of it is here.

My coverage of The Photography Show/AIPAD, 2017 may be seen here.

My previous Posts regarding Photography are here.

My thanks to Margery Newman and Nicole Strauss.

NighthawkNYC.com has been entirely self-funded & ad-free for over 7 years, during which over 275 full length pieces have been published!
I can no longer fund it myself. More on why here.
If you’ve found it worthwhile, PLEASE donate to keep it online & ad-free below.
Thank you, Kenn.

Written & photographed by Kenn Sava for nighthawknyc.com unless otherwise credited.
To send comments, thoughts, feedback or propositions click here.
Click the white box on the upper right for the archives or to search them.
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  1. Press release April 12, 2018
  2. I’m not putting them in that box. They were part of a show with that title which spawned the term at the George Eastman House, Rochester, NY in 1975.
  3. Ibid

AIPAD: The Picture Show

This site is Free & Ad-Free! If you find this piece worthwhile, please donate via PayPal to support it & independent Art writing. You can also support it by buying Art & books! Details at the end. Thank you.

Written & Photographed by Kenn Sava (*- unless otherwise credited)

This is the fourth Post in my series on “The Photography Show, 2017,” aka “AIPAD.” The first three Posts are here. AIPAD was, also, my NoteWorthy Show for March. 

This time, I’m finally going to show some Photographs! After all? Isn’t that why anyone went? I’ve shown some in my prior Posts, and here are some more (with who was presenting it, of course), along with a few shots of Gallery Booths (after all, it’s the work being shown that matters, right?), and one of the Collections, (which were included this year for the first time), that stood out to me. Then, I’ll wrap up all of my coverage with the reaction to the show of the Gallerists I spoke to, as well as my own. Ok. Let’s see pictures!

“Look at that cloud
As high as a tree
At least that’s how it looks to me

How about you?
What do you see?
What if we see things differently?

Show me how the world looks through your eyes
Tell me about the sunrise, let me see the stars shine
Show me how the world looks through your eyes”*

Speaking of “Look at that cloud…,” this is Glenda Leon’s “Between the Air and Dreams,” 2008, from The Plonsker Collection of Cuban Photography (see below). I don’t know if the clouds REALLY aligned like this, but it sums up the global scope of The Photography Show, 2017. Click any image to enlarge.

A world, and 140 years apart, gives an idea of the range seen at AIPAD. Sohei Nishino’s incredibly complex “Diorama Map of New Delhi,” 2013, at Bryce Wolkowitz left, across the hall from Edward Muybridge’s equally incredible 1873 “View of Yosemite” at Robert Koch Gallery, right.

Ashley Gilbertson’s “Refugees Disembark on Lesvos, Greece, 2015,” quickly becoming iconic, at Monroe Gallery, where…

I still can’t believe that really was the legendary Tony Vaccaro. Seen with a wall of his masterpieces to his right. Georgia O’Keefe (below), Picasso, “The Violinist,” Hitler’s Eagles Nest and a fallen GI, from the far right corner, behind him, at Monroe Gallery’s booth.

Living history. Mr. Vaccaro actually knew Georgia O’Keefe (seen in both of these), Jackson Pollock, Frank Lloyd Wright, and on and on.

Want to buy top quality work by major Photographers in signed, limited editions for as little as 300.00? Check out Light Work, at lightwork.org, a non-profit in Syracuse, NY. The money goes to help Photographers. Their astounding list of their Artists In Residence to date, which includes Cindy Sherman, can be seen here.

Wonderfully friendly Gallerists were on hand from all over the world, like Raffaella De Chirico, all the way from Turin, Italy, bringing stunning work…

like that of Fabio Bucciarelli, with her, which she sold shortly after I got this photo.

Tribe came all the way from Dubai, U.A.E. to represent the thriving Photo world in 22 Arab countries.

With Galleries as far as the eye can see (check out the signs up top), you’ll need a plane. This is only one aisle of them.

Collections were a new feature this year, including the Plonsker Collection of Cuban Photography, above, and the renowned Walther Collection.

 

Intermission. In case you need a rest, here’s a little thing I call “On The Fence, #1- AIPAD Edition,” 2017. The Owl in question was by no less than Masao Yamamoto at Yancey Richardson.

 

Far & Away THE most amazing book on view, and that’s saying something- “Rijks”. $7,000.00 per, and 55 pounds. Huge! It comes with the table.

Seen the way Rembrandt created it. An immortal “Self Portrait,” as never seen before- UNFRAMED, gives a remarkably different effect.

More workmanship went into the cover of it than I could explain in an entire Post.

I know what you’re thinking- “The ‘Painting guy’ goes to The Photography Show and winds up writing about what else? A PAINTING BOOK- The ONLY Painting book in the place, no less! Well…Yes, and no1. It’s “Rijks: Masters of the Golden Age,” published by Marcel Wanders (Uitgeverij Komma and Magic Group Media), a book of photographs of paintings, but not just any paintings. 64 masterpieces from the Rikjsmuseum, Amsterdam’s “Gallery of Honour,” like you will never see them- UNFRAMED. Yes. You read that right (It STILL blows my mind) with details of each blown up to over 1,000%! Of course, I couldn’t stop looking at it, and just WOW! It may well be the greatest, the most beautiful, and the most well done Art Book I’ve ever seen. I’ve never seen Rembrandt in anything close to this level of detail. I told them that most of it’s pages would make stunning posters. For the “rest of us,” who don’t have the 7 grand, the space, or both for this incredible book, there is a smaller version available for 150.00. It’s cheaper than a plane ticket to Amsterdam!

Forever young. “Two Sisters,” 1850, by Southworth and Hawes at Contemporary Works/Vintage Works, Chalfont, PA.

Interesting to contrast with these hauntingly beautiful portraits of the moment by Ruud Van Empel at Jackson Fine Art

“Washington Merry Go Round,” 1950, by Weegee. An unusual work of his using lens experiments, and a very rare signed piece by the NYC Legend, at Michael Shapiro Gallery.

“Mommy, Are you SURE Kate Moss started out this way?”

Fred Herzog, who began doing color street photography in Vancouver circa 1954, and continued for 50 years, has only been shown since 2007. He has a marvelous eye, and a universal charm that is only beginning to be as recognized in the USA, as he is in Canada. Vancouver’s Equinox Gallery revealed his range over about 25 wonderfully chosen works.

Todd Hido, from his classic series, “House Hunting, 2002,” at ClampArt, NYC. Somebody better buy this before I do!

And, Finally- Summing up AIPAD…

I spoke to approximately 25 Gallerists (out of the 115 or so attending) about their experience at AIPAD starting on Thursday, and followed up on Sunday as the show was about to end. I’ve continued to do so with those I encountered this week as the dust was still settling. (Amazingly to me, most of the NYC Galleries had shows going on WHILE they were at AIPAD!) Of course, there was a range of reactions. Most of the Gallerists I spoke to seemed pleased. Some thought the show was too big, others wondered about the inclusion of the book area. Early on (through Thursday night), most of those I spoke with weren’t happy. “I could have done this from home,” one told me, summing up the general feeling. This was understandable as there was an absolutely torrential rain storm that lasted all day and night Thursday. Given Pier 94’s out of the way location (the trade off for getting it’s generous size), only the very, very dedicated somehow found a way to get to the show (the MTA runs not exactly near it, and cabs in hard rain that far west are as rare as finding a real, signed Diane Arbus at a flea market. There were shuttles, but I never tried them). Friday, the crowds returned, and the show seemed well attended, as far as I could tell, from then on. Activity seemed steady at the Gallery booths, in the book area (aided by a never ending string of book signings), and in the talks. The two cafe areas looked pretty full much of the time. It was hard to judge sales by only looking for red dots on title cards or lists, so I asked. No one dodged my question. On the contrary, most seemed eager to express their experience and feelings. A surprising number had taken the time to wander around and see the show, and were well versed in specifics of what they saw, which was fascinating. Some bemoaned the encroachment of “video,” which I agree with, unfortunately extending to Colleen Plumb’s “Path Infinitum,” a very laudable work about animals in captivity, being out of place in a Photography show. Some felt there was relatively little older/classic work. I found this interesting given that the Art/Painting Gallery world is so skewed towards Modern & Contemporary Art- the number of Galleries showing “classic” works is, relatively, small. I expected to see something similar at AIPAD, especially since I have been to most of the NYC Galleries who were exhibiting. (This was my first AIPAD.) Personally, I was surprised by the number of beautiful classic works by Ansel Adams and Robert Frank, though I was disappointed to see only one William Eggleston, only a handful of Saul Leiters, and no Araki’s (I am sure I just missed them. Many of Araki’s books were present in the book area).

The hair of the dog that bit me. William Eggleston’s “Yellow Market Sign and Parking Lot,” 2001, at Jorg Maass. The only work by the Photographer that I saw. He started all this “trouble” for me back in December, and STILL only continues to grow in my esteem, which surprises the heck out of me, Typically, this work haunts me. What better way to close this chapter?

From the following generation of Photographers, there were only a couple of Bruce Davidsons, and Sebastiao Salgados, though there was a nice group of Ernst Hass, who’s “Route 66, Albequerque, New Mexico,” 1969, seemed to stop everyone who passed it at Atlas Gallery. Personally? I came looking for great Photographers previously unknown to me, and aided by an expert, the man called Jackson Charles, I added about 100 names to my lists. Most of the Gallerists I spoke with agreed that there was an impressive amount of PhotoJournalists on display, a number of who turned their cameras on the refugee crisis, with amazing results. Particularly surprising, and impressive, for me were the Galleries that came the longest distances, like Raffaella De Chirico from Turin, shown above, often showed PhotoJouralism, or other similar work that many deem “difficult” to hang. Others who traveled significant distance, featured Photographers who are not big names here, but who’s work deserves more attention, like Shoot Gallery, Oslo, I wrote about earlier.

Too Much Is Never Enough In New York. That’s Pier 92, seen from half way down Pier 94 (where AIPAD was) to give a sense of size. Pier 92 is SMALLER than Pier 94!

The reaction of the attendees I heard most often later on Saturday was their feet were getting tired. It dawned on me that if there wasn’t so much worth seeing, they would have left before their feet got tired. I heard mixed things in the book area. Some Booth-holders were very pleased with how they did. Others not so much. It seemed to me it drew a lot of visitors, not surprising given how many Photographers were on hand for book signings throughout the show. A number of publishers debuted titles, or brought about to be released books. I think there were quite a few people who went to AIPAD purely for the book area. (Maybe this will lead to a separate PhotoBook show…?) Some of these tables seemed a bit small and crowded together (just like NYC Apartments), but the range of Publishers and Organizations present in this area I found most impressive. I hope they are included next year, and the layout is improved.

Personally? I found AIPAD to be professionally staged, managed and run throughout. I think most visitors were impressed by it. I found little to complain about- and I looked hard. Getting to and fro was the biggest downside, in my opinion. In the end, I hope lessons are learned from this year’s show to make a very good experience even better next year.

Thank You’s-
I can’t leave AIPAD without thanking the following people-

-Jackson Charles- Photography & PhotoBook Expert Extraordinaire, for his guidance and insights above and beyond the call of duty over FOUR days.
-Kellie McLaughlin of the legendary Aperture Foundation for introducing me to Gregory Halpern, and considerations throughout
-Paul Schiek and Lester Rosso of TBW Books for introductions to Jim Jocoy, Raymond Meeks, and other considerations
Jim Jocoy for sharing his extraordinary experiences, and amazing new book with me
Raymond Meeks for sharing his beautiful work, especially his lovingly crafted hand made new release
-Danny who turned me on to Curran Hatleberg
-Forrest Soper of PhotoEye for turning me on to Moises Saman’s “Discordia
-Sophie Brodovitch of Equinox Gallery, Vancouver for her Fred Herzog expertise, and consideration
-All the Gallerists and Organizations who spoke with me and shared their expertise and insights with me.
-Margery Newman of Margery Newman Communication for her help and consideration throughout

And, finally, to Bruce Davidson, and all the great Photographers, past and present, all over the world, who are the reason we went to AIPAD- To see the world through their eyes.

*-Soundtrack for this Post is “Through Your Eyes,” written by Richard Marx and Dean Pitchford, published by Wonderland Music Co., Inc.

This is the 4th and final Part of the most extensive coverage of AIPAD, 2017, available anywhere! The rest of this 4-part series is here.

NighthawkNYC.com has been entirely self-funded & ad-free for over 8 years, during which 300 full length pieces have been published! If you’ve found it worthwhile, PLEASE donate to allow me to continue below. Thank you, Kenn.

You can also support it by buying Art, Art & Photography books, and Music from my collection! Art & Books may be found here. Music here and here

Written & photographed by Kenn Sava for nighthawknyc.com unless otherwise credited. To send comments, thoughts, feedback or propositions click here. Click the white box on the upper right for the archives or to search them. Subscribe to be notified of new Posts below. Your information will be used for no other purpose.

  1. I’ve written about a number of excellent PhotoBooks I saw at AIPAD in the earlier parts of this series.

AIPAD SnapShots: The Photographers- Memorable Meetings

This site is Free & Ad-Free! If you find this piece worthwhile, please donate via PayPal to support it & independent Art writing. You can also support it by buying Art & books! Details at the end. Thank you.

Written & Photographed by Kenn Sava (*- unless otherwise credited)

This is the third of my Series of Posts on “The Photography Show 2017” aka AIPAD.

I gave up trying to count how many Photographers of note were on hand over AIPAD’s 5 days. But, it’s with great pleasure I recount the opportunities I had to speak with many of them. Along with Jim Jocoy, the subject of the second Post in this series, here are some of my most memorable encounters…

Gregory Halpern-

Gregory Halpern standing next to his work, “Untitled” from his “Buffalo” series, at Aperture’s Booth at AIPAD, March 31st.

Gregory Halpern was the biggest revelation I had at AIPAD. Another Photographer I had never heard of until I saw this piece, “Untitled,” at Aperture’s booth on Wednesday night. I was immediately taken by it. I went home and spent the night researching him and his work. Every single example of Mr. Halpern’s work I saw held me…fascinated me…spoke to me, and downright compelled me to look again. This doesn’t happen often (the last two times being William Eggleston and Todd Hido), so I pay attention when it does. Later, I discovered that his monographs “A”,  and 2016’s “ZZYZX,” (which won Aperture’s 2016 Best Book Of The Year Award), were sold out. Hmmm…I’m not the only one his work speaks to.

This was not posed. Gregory Halpern, “Untitled” From ZZYZX. Courtesy Gregory Halpern & AIPAD.

Luckily, thanks to Kellie McLaughlin of Aperture, I was very fortunate to get a chance to meet Mr. Halpern and speak with him Friday afternoon. A cerebral, thoughtful and humble man, who also teaches Photography to very lucky students at Rochester Institute of Technology, he was so forthcoming, I found myself pulling back on asking him about certain of his works because I began to worry about losing some of their mystery that I love. Even in this brief time I could sense the depth of what is going on under the surface of this Artist. Beyond this, it seems to me that his work often has a magic to it that is incredibly rare. I came away on Wednesday night believing “Untitled” was the most compelling work I saw in the entire show by a Photographer unknown to me. During my research, I came across an absolutely amazing interview with him that anyone interested in his work must read, here. Not only might he become one of the most important Photographers of the next few years, he may, also, become one of it’s key writers. For my part, I was very surprised when he told me that Todd Hido was one of his teachers! Hmmm…Is Todd Hido (who I’ve never had the pleasure of meeting) teaching his students how to get to me? He seems to have the secret. Maybe if I ever do meet him, he’ll tell me.

Mike Mandel-

Mike Mandel signs his classic book, “Evidence.”

I met the co-author of “Evidence,” (which is listed in Martin Parr & Gerry Badger’s 3 volume set “The Photobooks,” widely considered one of the two standard references to the best PhotoBooks ever created), in passing and spoke to him briefly. My impression was that he may be a bit surprised at the ongoing importance and relevance of “Evidence,” which was first published 40 years ago in 1977. Perhaps, even he didn’t see that coming. The first book created from found and repurposed photos, the branches that have come off of it’s tree just seem to go on and on, and given the world’s current situation, show no sign of ending.

Lee Friedlander and Tabitha Soren-

Lee Friedlander, with TBW’s Lester Rosso, left, peruses his new book, “Head,” part of TBW Books Subscription Series No. 5

Tabitha Soren, who was with MTV back in the day, now a Photographer, with Lester Rosso and Paul Schiek (left and center) of TBW Books.

I met both (separately) in passing at the TBW Booth. The legendary Mr. Friedlander was looking over his new book by TBW, and Ms. Soren was perusing their latest releases, while 3 of her Photo-works were on view over at Aperture’s booth, along with her Baseball-themed book.

Jo Bentdal-

Jo Bentdal, with 4 of his portraits from his series “Common Sensibility.”

I met the Portraitist at Shoot Gallery, Oslo, Norway’s booth. I couldn’t believe it when I got home from the show and looked at the shot I took of him. It so looks like one of his portraits he’s standing alongside of, right? Did he do this knowingly? I don’t know, but meeting him was full of fascinating insights into the state of Photography in this country most New Yorkers know almost nothing about. Mr. Bentdal’s Portraits of young women (part of a series of 11 works of girls ages 13-15 titled “Common Sensibility”) hang in the collection of a large bank in Norway, which I found very interesting, and hopeful, as a statement of responsibility to (the) next generation(s), who are watching us. I couldn’t help but think back to the Northern European Painted Portrait tradition, which share some similar poses, but always with more going on in the background (usually religious). There is a hint of them here, for me, but more, there was a purity New Yorkers don’t often see in portraits, surrounded as we are by the Nan Goldins and others who have come along since Diane Arbus here. I found Mr. Bentdal’s work a refreshing reminder of other possibilities, and that there is a big world out there, I hear. More about him, here.

Continuing to explore Shoot Gallery’s booth, right next to four of Mr. Bentdal’s Portraits, were two double exposures by Dag Alveng-

Den Alveng with “This is most important/Table Cloth,” a double exposure from 2001, before 9/11.

Mr. Alveng was born in Oslo, but commuted between Oslo and NYC between 1986 and 1996. Even New Yorkers would call that a heck of a commute! Both works he showed were shot in NYC, the one above in pre 9/11 2001, which I found an interesting choice to show here. When I mentioned that, Mr. Alveng said that 9/11 had the same impact everywhere. The work has an image of dining tables in the forefront, with additional tables seen in the same shot through the window. This leads to the second exposure, which takes us further and further back, until we reach the World Trade Center all the way in the center rear. Even though 9/11 was almost 16 years ago, I still find it hard to look at pictures of the Twin Towers without thinking about that day- in spite of the fact that I have many many other, earlier, memories of them. This one was no different, with it’s juxtaposition of fine dining, which is a pleasure for most, the looming tall towers in the back, make it hard to enjoy anything, leaving me with the overriding feeling of impending doom. Like the saying “he who doesn’t remember the past is doomed to repeat it.” But, that’s just me- Your results may differ. As he explained to me, the resulting image from the double exposure was pure chance. Remarkable, indeed. It is exceedingly well done, with a subtlety that rewards multiple viewings, especially at this generous size. Depth of field seems to be a key element in Mr. Alveng’s work- be it single or double exposure. His use of the latter technique led to fascinating results in both works he showed, the other work features children frolicking in the City, an interesting “bridge” to Mr. Bentdal’s Portraits next to it. The children’s mother magically appears in the work, in double exposure, insights I could only get by being fortunate that Mr. Alveng was there, and was gracious enough to tell me about the work’s genesis, and to pose for a photo with “This is most important/Table Cloth,” a piece I will forever think of when I think of him. More of his work is here, and at Shoot Gallery, Norway’s site. I have a feeling we will be seeing more of his work in NYC. I hope so.

Right next to his work was a small set of unique works- glass negatives on black sheets by Eric Antoine, priced at 5,000. each. Mr. Antoine, who was unknown to me, and who I did not meet, is a Master of this medium, and the extraordinary detail contained in each of these very beautiful works made me feel the price was a bargain.

Raymond Meeks-

Raymond Meeks’ “Cabbage White” Folio (in progress). He asked I photograph his work instead of him.

Another Photographer I had never heard of until meeting him at the booth he shared with TBW. I should have heard of him. He’s had a few books released by prestigious Nazraeli Books, including one in their renowned “One Picture Books” series, and a darn good one, as well as a book in their very first “Six By Six” (Series 1), where he was joined by no less than Todd Hido, Anthony Hernandez, Martin Parr, Mark Stenmetz and Toshio Shibata- heavy hitters, all. He’s also been published by TBW Books, and if you hurry, a classic example of his work is available at Light Work, the fine non-profit organization that supports Photographers, here, for 300.00. Mr. Meeks was showing a gorgeous hand made Artist Book entitled “Cabbage White,” a folio that includes a hand made box, a book, a broadside, a silver gelatin print, mostly shot near his upstate New York home that alternates intensely lyrical Black & White shots of nature and people- singly or in groups. The effect is transportive, like a trip to another place where people swim, hang out, jump and leap into the water and live, like people Live, like the exceptionally beautiful trees he seems to be known for live. Though accompanied by text, Mr. Meeks is a visual poet, who’s work possesses a rare lyricism that has the power to take you out of yourself on journeys his work suggests. This may be best experienced in the Artist-controlled context of this precious boxed set, of which he has only created 30 copies, so this strikes me as, perhaps, the ideal way to experience Raymond Meeks. Beware- this work will get inside you, sprout roots and grow inside of you, like one of the trees he renders with a beauty and skill reminiscent of classic Photography. Like his work, he’s an equally down to earth and forthright man, who’s looming, quiet, watchful presence mirrors his work.

Bruce Davidson-

 

Bruce Davidson signs his book “Central Park” for yours truly.

(As I mentioned in the first Post in this series.) I asked the man who I consider the Dean of New York City Photographers how he survived shooting the 1980 photos that became his classic book, “Subway,” back when the trains were like the Wild West. He cryptically told me “It was because I looked like a photographer.” I spent the rest of the day thinking this over. While this was the fist time I’d met Mr. Davidson, I own two of his pieces, and a number of his books, and along the way, I’ve spoken to many people who know or knew and/or who worked with him. The one thing I remember all of them saying was, “Ohhhhhh…..Bruce…”, with an utter fondness in their voice, that’s rare in my experience- not about Photographers. About people. I came away feeling that Bruce Davidson has a presence, a persona that people just like, and/or don’t feel threatened around. Looking at his work, how else to explain how so many of his subjects show us parts of themselves they probably don’t show everyone? Mr. Davidson sat and signed at Steidl’s booth for a solid hour, and I took the chance to have him sign his extraordinary collection of many of his greatest books, “Black And White,” for me. It’s a set every lover of great Photography should have, in my opinion, before it goes out of print, like the original versions of all the books it contains did.

Other Photographers seen, but unmet-

Builder Levy, the social documentarian and street photographer seen in front of some of his work.

Richard Rinaldi, right, discusses his new book “Manhattan Sunday,” about night owls in Manhattan circa 2010. Hey! Wait just one minute there.

Paolo Ventura, left, with Kellie McLaughlin of Aperture (center), shows a copy of his latest book, “Short Stories.” I can’t imagine how much work goes into one of Mr. Ventura’s pieces.

And finally, the amazing Tony Vaccaro, who’s lived an unfathomable life in Photography. Famous for iconic shots of Georgia O’Keefe, Picasso, Jackson Pollock, Frank Lloyd Wright, among many others, oh, and World War II, which France gave him the Legion D’Honneur for his photos of, seen at Monroe Gallery’s Booth.

Had enough of AIPAD? Me neither. Over 5 days, (and I was there for all 5), there was a lot to see. More to come!

This is Part 2 of the most extensive coverage of AIPAD, 2017, available anywhere! The rest of this 4-part series is here.

*-Soundtrack for this Post is “Every Picture Tells A Story (Don’t It?)” by Ron Wood and Steve Harley and recorded by Rod Stewart.

NighthawkNYC.com has been entirely self-funded & ad-free for over 8 years, during which 300 full length pieces have been published! If you’ve found it worthwhile, PLEASE donate to allow me to continue below. Thank you, Kenn.

You can also support it by buying Art, Art & Photography books, and Music from my collection! Art & Books may be found here. Music here and here

Written & photographed by Kenn Sava for nighthawknyc.com unless otherwise credited. To send comments, thoughts, feedback or propositions click here. Click the white box on the upper right for the archives or to search them. Subscribe to be notified of new Posts below. Your information will be used for no other purpose.

AIPAD SnapShots: The Photographers- Jim Jocoy

This site is Free & Ad-Free! If you find this piece worthwhile, please donate via PayPal to support it & independent Art writing. You can also support it by buying Art & books! Details at the end. Thank you.

Written & Photographed by Kenn Sava (*- unless otherwise credited)

This is the second of my Series of 4 Posts on “The Photography Show, 2017,” aka “AIPAD.”  This part is a close up of one of the Photographers I encountered at the show, Jim Jocoy. More soon…

“…no hard chords on the car radio we set the trash on fire and watch
outside the door men come up the pavement under the marquee
there’s laughing outside we’re locked outside the public eye…”*

If you love Rock n Roll, and/or great Photography, Jim Jocoy is a name you should know. That’s easy for me to say now. Up until Thursday at 3pm, I had never heard of him.

Then, aiding me in my recent efforts to get up to speed on the world of Contemporary Photography, Paul Schiek, Owner of TBW Books, one of the most respected imprints in the PhotoBook world, handed me a copy of “Order of Appearance,” TBW’s just released collection of his 1977-1980 punk rock photos. It’s only Mr. Jocoy’s second book after the initial collection of his work from this period, 2002’s “We’re Desperate,” which included an interview with the Photographer by Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth, and a preface by Designer Marc Jacobs. It’s now a collector’s item going for $300.00 and up online.

One look through “Order of Appearance” and I was mezmerized.

Having been a musician in a band on the road at the same time Mr. Jocoy has immortalized, though on the East Coast, while was he busy on the West Coast, I’d lived through this, too, but only seen photos that captured both the essence of what it was like as well as the moments that defined the scene in the extraordinary shots taken by the late, great Bruce Conner, some on view at MoMA this past year, as I mentioned, here.

Until now.

Speaking with him a few hours later, Mr. Jocoy told me actually saw Bruce Conner in the clubs quite often, and came to know him, but, he said that he never once saw Bruce Conner with a camera! In fact, he initially thought he was just an odd guy who danced funny.

Jim Jocoy’s “Order of Appearance,” a brand-new release from TBW Books, features a cover design by Paul Schiek that lifted the black lines of a design on a shirt worn in the book and placed it on top of one of a statue in true punk fashion. Click any image to enlarge.

As I looked through “Order of Appearance,” I was struck by the thought that here, Mr. Jocoy has gone even Bruce Conner one better. He captures more of what it was like, taking you, on, but also off stage, and back stage, and only he knows where else, continually providing the feeling that you are right there- seeing things that only happen late at night when there’s an excess of excess, except that you also happen to be a terrific photographer, so indescribable moments that no one who wasn’t there would ever believe happened, are magically frozen in time for you, at the “peak of their freshness” as they say. The resulting body of work, hidden away in Mr. Jocoy’s archives for these past almost 40 years (or, “locked outside the public eye,” as X sings in “The Unheard Music,” on their album “Los Angeles,” I quoted up top) is many things- a work that captures a musical and social movement in time, and, as I was to find out a short while later when the Photographer, himself, gave me a guided walk-through of the book, a very personal remembrance for him, as a number of those pictured are no longer with us. Yet, Mr. Jocoy turned this precious body of work over to Paul Schiek and Lester Rosso of TBW who then created this book out of it. Mr Schiek, in addition to being the Owner/Publisher of TBW Books is also a Photographer of renown in his own right, and so was a serendipitous collaborator for this project, bringing the sensitivity only a fellow Artist could bring to the project, and the results are stunning, often down right uncanny.

I was so much older then. Jim Jocoy poses with a 1980 Portrait of his 37 years younger self!

Right from the first image in the book.

Muriel Cervenka with bruised knees. Photo by Jim Jocoy, the first image in “Order of Appearance.”

Mr. Jocoy explained to me that this lady, sitting next to a road case that once belonged to dancer Twyla Tharp, and who’s knees are bruised in this photo (as a dancer’s might be), and who’s feet look like they are “on pointe” in her red shoes, no less, is Muriel Cervenka, the sister of Exene of the band “X.” Muriel was killed in a hit and run just days after this photo was taken, and on the night of X’s debut for their first album, “Los Angeles.” What a unique photo it is- I’ve never seen a “portrait” like it- in Paint or in a Photo. Exene actually went on just after getting the news, he told me. While that adds incaclulable levels of poignancy to seeing it, the fact that it was placed first by Messers Schiek & Rosso, where it sets a tone for the rest of the book’s three sections astonished me.

Already, I knew this was a special book.

As he continued, reminiscing with such immediacy that I felt like these things had happened this past week, the passing images were equally remarkable, whether they were of members of bands I’d heard of, or not, or people who just happened to be there, including Allen Ginsberg. I felt that many of the portraits in this book were “ideal” portraits- THE image someone would want to be remembered by. They encapsulated them so well, you got a sense of who they were, though they’re total strangers to me, and probably most of us. Mr. Jocoy seems to have been everywhere at once, but no matter where he is, his personal connection to everything in this book takes it light years beyond being a party book, or even an amazing document of the time and a moment in music and culture, to make it a beautiful & moving personal testament, and all of that is what makes it special1. And, did I mention that Jim Jocoy is, also, one of the nicest guys you will ever have the pleasure to meet?

“Woman reclining on car,” 1977. Something similar happened to me, and only lives in my memory. Luckily, Jim Jocoy beautifully captured his for the ages.

Then we spoke about that passage of time. I asked him about these slides sitting in his archives for so long. He mentioned looking at them a little while after he took them and feeling they were good, and they “would still be good,” after even more time passed. Well now, almost FORTY YEARS have passed, and these images are not just “good.” They’re very, very good, and as lovingly presented as they are in “Order of Appearance?”

“D.N.A. and Sharon,” a miraculous double exposure that every other bass player on earth, starting with me, is jealous of. Sharon was lying on the street, which you can barely make out. Sorry for the poor pic- I didn’t want to open my book too far.

“Guy passed out,” 1978. If this doesn’t sum the whole thing up, perfectly, I don’t know what does. My photo is poor, so pick up a copy and see it in all it’s glory.

“Friends in a Gold Car,” 1978, by Jim Jocoy.

With only 1,000 copies printed, I think it’s destined to be as sought after as “We’re Desperate” is now.

Book Artists. Paul Schiek, Owner of TBW Books, left, with Lester Rosso, Program Director, designers of “Order of Appearance,” with the finished book, the poster for it, and some of Jim’s work at AIPAD.

Don’t take my word for Mr. Jocoy’s talent. No less than that huge fan of rock n roll, Shepard Fairey, used one of Jim Jocoy’s other images, his classic shot of Sid Vicious, in an Obey Giant print in 2004 called “Sid Jocoy.”

Jim Jocoy’s now iconic Polaroid of Sid Vicious in January, 1978, after the Sex Pistols last performance together. Photo by Jim Jocoy. (Not in his new book)

Then, Mr. Jocoy spoke about releasing these photos now, partly, out of a “responsibility” to those he photographed who have passed. While “Order of Appearance” is a beautiful tribute to his departed friends, who will continue to live on through his work, it also cements Jim Jocoy’s legacy among both the great music photographers, and portraitists, of our time.

Jim Jocoy holding TBW’s poster for his new book. As it says, THIS is the real deal.

*-Soundtrack for this Post is “The Unheard Music,” written by Exene Cervenka and John Doe, from “Los Angeles,” by X, published by The Bicycle Music Company.

This is Part 3 of the most extensive coverage of AIPAD, 2017, available anywhere! The rest of this 4-part series is here.

NighthawkNYC.com has been entirely self-funded & ad-free for over 8 years, during which 300 full length pieces have been published! If you’ve found it worthwhile, PLEASE donate to allow me to continue below. Thank you, Kenn.

You can also support it by buying Art, Art & Photography books, and Music from my collection! Art & Books may be found here. Music here and here

Written & photographed by Kenn Sava for nighthawknyc.com unless otherwise credited. To send comments, thoughts, feedback or propositions click here. Click the white box on the upper right for the archives or to search them. Subscribe to be notified of new Posts below. Your information will be used for no other purpose.

  1. Mr. Jocoy includes a page of captions, most including names, near the end of the book.

AIPAD- The Photo World Poses For It’s Close-Up

This site is Free & Ad-Free! If you find this piece worthwhile, please donate via PayPal to support it & independent Art writing. You can also support it by buying Art & books! Details at the end. Thank you.

Written & Photographed by Kenn Sava (*- unless otherwise credited)

Part 1- Pulling Back The Curtains on the World of “Fine Art” Photography.

Live, From Pier 94.

“Kodachrome
They give us those nice bright colors
They give us the greens of summers
Makes you think all the world’s a sunny day
I got a Nikon camera
I love to take a photograph
So mama don’t take my Kodachrome away.”*

Speaking of pulling back curtains, Arno Minkkinen’s “From the Shelton Hotel, Looking East,” 2005 @ Edward Houk Gallery does the honors nicely. Click any image on this site to see it full size.

Well, Kodak did take Kodachrome away from us in 2009, but even that didn’t stop the world’s Photographers from still “loving to take a photograph.” For the rest of us, if you love looking at Photography, and want to see the best of it- older or contemporary, going to “The Photography Show,” or “AIPAD” as everyone calls it (actually the initials of it’s sponsoring organization- The Association of International Photography Art Dealers) on Pier 94 this week, is like dying and going to Photo-heaven. It’s walls are lined with a seemingly never ending array of classic works and works that push the envelopes of today’s cutting edge tech, with everything else you can think of mixed in. The range and diversity was head-spinning and reached what seems to be every corner of the known world.  Unfortunately, due to the travel ban, an Iraqi Gallery cancelled, leaving a poignant open space, and um? A photo op.

He said, raising his Nikon…Wish you were here. NG Galerie, Tehran didn’t make it due to the “travel ban and the uncertainty of international travel…” as the sign reads.

The other booths were occupied by 115 of the world’s leading Photography galleries and organizations, augmented by some exceptional collections and an entire area devoted to the white-hot world of Photobooks and Publishers- large and small. The presence of so many top notch small publishers (like Nazraeli Press and TBW Books) who continually issue exemplary titles by artists both well-known and not so well known, but very deserving, is a highlight for me. Quite a few of their older titles command big sums on the secondary market. While NYC-based Aperture, as always, deserves special acknowledgement for their ongoing commitment to Photographers, I was especially excited at the rare chance to be able to speak to both Nazraeli and TBW (who aren’t based here) at length and get previews of some very impressive titles they are about to release. More on this, soon, but I will say that the Art, and the Craft, of bookmaking shows no signs of slowing down in the face of eBooks. These are people who LOVE books, and making books that contain the utmost respect for the work within for people who love physical books. My heart, if not my overflowing bookshelves, are with them!

Exhibitor List & Floor Plan. No. You’re not at The Met. It only feels that big. Three visits in? I’ve seen 15% of it.

The book area also proved an especially hard area to leave given the steady stream of big name Photographers (led by the incomparable Bruce Davidson), who were on hand for book-signings going on all weekend. If that wasn’t enough, and here in NYC, too much is NEVER enough, there also talks scheduled, featuring the likes of Lee Friedlander, who’s is sold out.

The Photobook area just after opening Wednesday eve and before the crowds descended upon it looking for rare items, discounts and signed copies. Among those here are Aperture, Light Work (both right), Nazraeli Press, TBW Books (both center rear), Steidl, and no less than 5 from Japan, even one from Dubai.

In the presence of Greatness. After a two day long buzz anticipating his appearance, Mr. Bruce Davidson, the Master of NYC Photography, in my book, makes a rare appearance at Steidl’s table.

Wandering through the huge display area, just about every Photographer you can think of was represented, many by exceptional, Museum-worthy examples of their work. It quickly dawned on me that seeing ALL of this was going to take the full 5 day run of the show. As I write this at 4:30am on Saturday, after being there Wednesday eve, Thursday and Friday, I plan to return to see as much as I can later today and Sunday.

All of these folks are saying the same thing- “If I only had more wall space…”

The impression I already get is that the realm of so called “Fine Art” Photography seems to be as popular, as vital, full of surprises and promising new voices right now as, perhaps, it’s ever been. It will be interesting to see how attendance is this weekend (after rains of Biblical proportions all day and night today), and if attendees vote with their wallets. Stay tuned. My coverage of AIPAD is just getting started!

This is Part 1 of the most extensive coverage of AIPAD, 2017, available anywhere! The rest of this 4-part series is here.

*-Soundtrack for this Post is “Kodachrome” by Paul Simon, published by Universal Music Publishing Group

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